Michael Jackson's death recalls that of Elvis Presley

Michael Jackson's early death has caused an outpouring of grief among music
fans on a scale not seen since Elvis Presley was found dead on his bathroom
floor in 1977.

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By Heidi Blake

5:54PM BST 26 Jun 2009

Crowds have gathered in their hundreds outside the Los Angeles hospital where Jackson was pronounced dead last night, in scenes reminiscent of the thousands who queued outside Presley's Memphis home, Graceland, on the day of his funeral.

The two "kings"of the music world both struggled with the burden of superstardom, and both shocked fans with erratic behaviour, rapidly deteriorating health and frequent cancellations in the last years of their lives.

Twenty two years ago, the Daily Telegraph marked the passing of the the Heartbreak Hotel singer with a two column story on its front page. Noting the singer's "hipswinging style", which earned him the nickname "Elvis the Pelvis", the paper credited him with setting the trend for "instant manipulated fame".

The story paid tribute to the rock'n'roll star's "unique mixture of country style and rhythm" and his enormous popularity among hordes of "shrieking fans".

An inside page obituary began: "Elvis Presley, who has died aged 42 and who used to perform with slicked-back black hair, sideburns and a perptual sneer when singing songs like You Ain't Nothing But a Hound Dog and Blue Suede Shoes was the son of ardently religious parents."

The articles reveal how Presley broke cultural taboos, while gaining sufficient celebrity to force his way into the mainstream.

After Presley's death, thousands of fans wore badges and t-shirts marked with the words "The King is Dead". But Michael Jackson, who later married Presley's daughter, was crowned the new King of Pop just five years later when he shot to the peak of his fame with the release of Thriller, the best-selling album of all time.